M9 brochure up... or not

[leica007]

An observation on the price:

Does the exclusion of Sapphire glass LCD [the brochure or the microsite did not mention it] mean that Leica is trying to keep the price low?

My assumption - and hope ! - is that M9 will be priced attractively and will directly compete with the topline DSLRs of Nikon and Canon. If that happens then Leica WILL turn around financially. and will receive applause from all of us, who have waited and waited for Leica to graduate to the premiere league of digital photography.

What price do people speculate? If I had to, then it would be $7000-7500 !
[current price of Nikon D3X is 7500 USD, Canon 1dsm3 is much lower]
Leica might not cross the psychological barrier of $7500-8000.

If it's $8000 or beyond, then I am afraid, not too many people will buy this in the current world market scenario. many of us will wait, again.

Appeal to Leica: you have got a killer in M9 and now please price is right and we will keep your assembly-line busy and buzzing.

ps: many of you have PM-ed me and sympathised over the banning incident at LUF - thanks to all.

 

[jlancasterd]

Additional feature on M9

Additional feature on M9

One new feature that hasn't been mentioned so far AFAIK is that they've added auto-bracketing - see under 'Complete Control of all Picture Parameters' on page 33. Could be useful in difficult lighting.

I'm hoping I can afford this camera - and will keep my M8 as a back up.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

Regardless of the price, Leica isn't competing with Nikon and Canon. Nikon and Canon DSLR users are not their target market.

 

[ulrikft]

I have carried a nikon d700 with a nikon 24 2.0, sigmalux 50 1.4 and a nikon 85 1.4 in a shoulderbag for a week now, in Israel and Palestine. Occasionally I have brought a sigma 20 1.8, nikon 105 2.8 and 70-200 2.8. I have gotten a lot of amazing shots, but my shoulder really wishes for al ighter, more compact kit... I guess I'll start saving for real if the high iso of the m9 looks good.

 

[leica007]

Regardless of the price, Leica isn't competing with Nikon and Canon. Nikon and Canon DSLR users are not their target market.

Well, who will constitute Leica's consumer base?
Some advanced amatuers with a deep pocket?

They have S2 for studio and commercial photography , which will compete with Hassy and PhaseOne. .
X1 for entry level amatuers fighting out with Oly and Pen m43.
D-lux with P&S.

that leaves the high middle level, which is dominated by Canonikon.

Where is then Leica M8 placed? and where will the consumers come from? In no case, a given consumer base will totally upgrade to a new product - hence, Leica needs new customers to expand its base. Whatever I understand about marketing [i have been 'viralling' for Leica all the while! ] makes me assume/ infer that Leica is drawing a tight marketing strategy - we might be getting a surprise price point. Hold your breath. :angel:

 

[johnny.moped]

ps: many of you have PM-ed me and sympathised over the banning incident at LUF - thanks to all.

Dude, stop complaining! andreas asked you to please stop posting links and images (for the obvious reasons) and as you didn't stop he banned you for FOUR DAYS (until 9/9).
he said it was more damage limitation than punishment.
so i really don't know what you are crying about.

 

[johnny.moped]

BTW it also says the framelines are set for 1m...that's bound to be a kick in the head for everyone who pitched a fit to get them @ 2m.

i know a lot of people will complain about this, but the 1m-framelines now are exactly the same as the ones in the film Ms. and a lot of people are shooting both.
so it's better this way (and people in the last three to four decades could live with it).

 

[Florian1234]

I think to get a M9 it would need a whole year's salary in my book... 🙁

 

[amoz]

I have been following this thread with interest, obviously, but I did miss one comment: aren't there many of you holding out for what Zeiss comes up with in 2010 (i.e. the rumoured digital Ikon)?

 

[leica007]

Dude, stop complaining! andreas asked you to please stop posting links and images (for the obvious reasons) and as you didn't stop he banned you for FOUR DAYS (until 9/9).
he said it was more damage limitation than punishment.
so i really don't know what you are crying about.

hello, the almighty, your royal highness, sir, FYI, the postings on LUF were done long before the notice was served. and then i got banned. the crime was questioning the 'censorship' of the threads.

hence, not crying.
and please, show some respect - it's because of me, no matter whatever 'mistake' I have committed or 'harm' caused to LUF, that you guys - all over the net- have got a talking point .

to make my case clearer: it's not a crime to inform the world about an existing website - i did not hack or do anything to illegally access their content - it was all up there for the public to view. if someone at ESC58/ Leica uploads the content prematurely- it's their problem/fault.

Meanwhile, I have settled the issue with Andreas [LUF admin] through PMs. so, I do not want to argue with people like you. Let's move on; I have.

Peace!:angel:

 

[johnny.moped]

hello, the almighty, your royal highness, sir, FYI, the postings on LUF were done long before the notice was served. and then i got banned. the crime was questioning the 'censorship' of the threads.

hence, not crying.
and please, show some respect - it's because of me, no matter whatever 'mistake' I have committed or 'harm' caused to LUF, that you guys - all over the net- have got a talking point .

to make my case clearer: it's not a crime to inform the world about an existing website - i did not hack or do anything to illegally access their content - it was all up there for the public to view. if someone at ESC58/ Leica uploads the content prematurely- it's their problem/fault.

Meanwhile, I have settled the issue with Andreas [LUF admin] through PMs. so, I do not want to argue with people like you. Let's move on; I have.

Peace!:angel:

that was not so much an offense as it might have sounded like in my writing. indeed a lot of people are very thankful for the information (though it makes 9/9 a bit less exciting - but never mind).
the thing just was that i read what andreas explained about your "ban" and then i read you complaining over here and kind of (as it sounded) not telling the whole story. i like andreas for what he does for all of us and how calm he can stay even on the wildest discussion on the LUF. so it just didn't sound fair.

but never mind.
peace 🙂

 

[newsgrunt]

Considering the beating Leica took over poor hi iso performance with the M8's, I'd have thought they'd make it a point to include some photographs that show great looking images shot at 3200 for example.

 

[Lilserenity]

I must admit I have not taken part in any Leica M9 discussion because to be honest, it bores the living daylights out of me.

That said, this confirms the M9 is on the way.

What I take from this is : I've used a Leica M8.2. It's was OK. It wasn't my M2 though. The M9 will without a doubt be well outside of my price range by a factor of at very least 4x over, probably nearer 6 times over.

However on the positive side, I know that maybe when 35mm film has become too expensive to print/shoot, I will have an alternative in the Leica M9 and I'll probably have enough money for one in a decade. I have so fallen in love with rangefinders and my M2 that apart from my OM2, I have no time whatsoever for SLRs anymore and I just love the way a Leica handles. This makes me feel good that there is a good full frame digital RF out there.

That said, I don't anticipate stopping my use of film for many, many years to come. Far too much fun in the darkroom for me 🙂 Plus, I actually own my M2, whereas the M9 is something I don't and won't for a very long time!

Vicky

 

[Erik van Straten]

I must admit I have not taken part in any Leica M9 discussion because to be honest, it bores the living daylights out of me.

I don't anticipate stopping my use of film for many, many years to come. Far too much fun in the darkroom for me 🙂 Plus, I actually own my M2, whereas the M9 is something I don't and won't for a very long time!

Vicky

I only can agree with that. Digital photography is no fun at all. In digital photography there are no photographs, only computer files.

Erik.

 

[leicashot]

I only can agree with that. Digital photography is no fun at all. In digital photography there are no photographs, only computer files.

Erik.

Erik I disagree with 'there are no photographs'.

This is a very narrow minded way of looking at photography. So what happens if a magazine wants to run one of your film images and NEEDS to scan it. Has it lost it's sole as a photograph, as it's been transformed into a hideous 'computer file?'

If you're comparing a M8 to a film M, there is no comparison in terms of usability and pure enjoyment. The M8 feels very different to say an MP. I really miss having a film advance leaver for one thing. By all means shoot film for as long as it makes you happy, or is available, but keep an open mind and respect those that have embraced the digital medium and understand that those photographs have just as much validity and credibility as those photographs taken on the film medium.

 

[Erik van Straten]

Erik I disagree with 'there are no photographs'.

This is a very narrow minded way of looking at photography. So what happens if a magazine wants to run one of your film images and NEEDS to scan it. Has it lost it's sole as a photograph, as it's been transformed into a hideous 'computer file?'

If you're comparing a M8 to a film M, there is no comparison in terms of usability and pure enjoyment. The M8 feels very different to say an MP. I really miss having a film advance leaver for one thing. By all means shoot film for as long as it makes you happy, or is available, but keep an open mind and respect those that have embraced the digital medium and understand that those photographs have just as much validity and credibility as those photographs taken on the film medium.

You are probably right, but for me a photograph is in the first place an untouched recording of life, of facts. Digital files are too easily spoiled with Photoshop, Lightroom and the like.
And, to make silver-gelatine prints from digital files is very difficult. From photography I want as a result a solid silver-gelatine print that will last many years. I do not think that digital files last a very long time, neither do prints from inkjet-printers.

Erik.

 

[jaapv]

That would be great, because then the demo I will buy in a year will be the same price as an M8.2 demo. I won't need to wait until the M10 comes out to get an M9 at a semi-sane price.

I wouldn't count on that, Ben, the camera might be a waiting-list item for quite some time.

I still don't get that. I have "a number of wide M lenses" (12mm, 15mm, 2x 21mm, 2x 28mm) and all of them work extremely well on my M8. So they deliver images with a coverage of one focal length longer. So what? The only one of them that will benefit from the FF M9 is the 12mm, because there isn't an M-mount 9mm that I know of.

I actually have a 9.8 mm lens...

 

[jaapv]

You are probably right, but for me a photograph is in the first place an untouched recording of life, of facts. Digital files are too easily spoiled with Photoshop, Lightroom and the like.

You mean like analog negatives are manipulated in the darkroom?

And, to make silver-gelatine prints from digital files is very difficult. From photography I want as a result a solid silver-gelatine print that will last many years. I do not think that digital files last a very long time, neither do prints from inkjet-printers.

Erik.

Well, the files will last considerably longer than film. Ask any conservator of photographic historica. Anything on celluloid from before WWII is deteriorated or close to that state. What is surviving now are copies or extensive professional restaurations. Digital files have the potential to live forever -unchanged. That argument is a red herring that was launched quite some time ago.

 

[Erik van Straten]

You mean like analog negatives are manipulated in the darkroom?
Well, the files will last considerably longer than film. Ask any conservator of photographic historica. Anything on celluloid from before WWII is deteriorated or close to that state. What is surviving now are copies or extensive professional restaurations. Digital files have the potential to live forever -unchanged. That argument is a red herring that was launched quite some time ago.

I own many perfect negatives on glass from about 1903 that are perfectly conserved.
Well processed b+w negatives on film are chemically very stable.
Computer systems tend to change. In about 20 years no system will be able to read files that are made now.

Erik.

 

[user237428934]

I only can agree with that. Digital photography is no fun at all. In digital photography there are no photographs, only computer files.

Erik.

Why don't you post in the film forums then? No one needs a film missionary here.